As heart rates stabilise east of GMT, I’m off for a soothing vada pav at Manchester Chit n Chaat (as kindly recommended by Krishnamoorthy’s cousin). Thank you all for your company and your emails – sorry I didn’t get around to them all.
There will be a new winner of the Women’s World Cup on Sunday. See you there.
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Harmanpreet Kaur, with the face of a woman dazed by events.
“I’m very proud, feeling great, we have been working hard for so many days, cant believe it.
We [her and coach] believe every player can win any match at any time in any situation. We made a few mistakes in this tournament and we have been learning from our mistakes.
We realised that we didn’t execute very well, we were late by two or three overs, that really cost us. We realised that we had to recalculate as once behind the rate it is hard to come back in the last five overs. You have to be very calculating.
Jemimah hasn’t batted at three too often, she always wants to do really well for the team and wants to take responsibility. Today was a very special knock from her, both of us had a very good time on the pitch, we were complementing each other and she was doing all the calculating on the pitch. I was so amazed to see how she was thinking and pushing me so we should give a lot of thanks to her.
We have one more game to go, we all played well, already we have started speaking about our next game, that’s how focussed we are. We are playing in home conditions which is really special for us, we want to do it for our fans and our families - one more game to go and we will do our best.
We are not playing alone the crowd are always with us, they’ve been amazing, even when we lost we kept getting messages. Our country is with us.
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Alyssa Healy’s reaction
We did that to ourselves a little bit, which is probably the first time that’s happened. We didn’t finish off with the bat, didn’t bowl great and dropped all our chances in the field. We still hung in there till the second last over, so we can take something from that, but ultimately we were outdone.
I thought we’d left a few runs out at the back end but 338, on a good wicket, I thought we were well in the game. It is what it is. India played really well, held their nerve and got themselves over the line.
[On Phoebe Litchfield] It’s a weird experience to watch the next generation go about it. Phoebs was sensational today and set us off really nicely. Kudos to her – it’s been fun to watch her and the next four years, leading into the next World Cup, will be really exciting to watch.
I thought Ash [Gardner] had a sensational tournament. Everyone contributed beautifully throughout this tournament which is why it’s so disappointing to be standing here right now.
We created enough chances [in the field], we just weren’t able to capitalise. I’m at fault for that as well. It’s something Australian prides themselves on and we let ourselves down. We’ll learn from that, we’ll grow and our one-day cricket will hopefully improve.
I think we’ve played some unbelievable tournament. But we’ve said throughout: if you don’t quite turn up in a knockout game, any of the top four teams will get you. They’re the top four teams for a reason. There was so much to be proud of, which is probably why this conversation stings a bit more.
I won’t be at the next World Cup mate! That’s the beauty of this next cycle, we’ll see [the evolution of the team] unfold. Like I said, there’s an opportunity for some young players and that’s really exciting for Australian cricket.
This match feels epic in so many ways. Not just in the extraordinary innings by Jemimah, and Harnampreet, and the cameos by Deepti and Richa, but the huge crowd, and the fact that now the Women’s World Cup Final will now be played between two sides who have never won it before. Massivley important for women’s cricket in India too. First the WPL, now this.
Australia should have won but they didn’t do the things they always do – they dropped catches, they threw overthrows, the death bowling wasn’t on point. The. pressure. got. to. them. And India capitalised.
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More from Jemimah Rodrigues
Initially I was just talking to myself [while batting], but towards the end I was just quoting scripture from the Bible because I had no energy, I was very tired. I was quoting one scripture which says, ‘Just stand still and God will fight for’, and that’s what I did. I stood there and he fought for me.
Towards the end I was trying to push myself and was not able to. Deepti was speaking to me and encouraging after every ball. I am so blessed that my teammates encouraged me to keep going. I can’t take credit for any of this; I know I’ve done nothing.
Navi Mumbai is special for me and I couldn’t ask for anything better. I would like to thank each and every person who chanted, who shouted, who believed, who cheered for every run. Thank you to everyone.
A tearful Jemimah Rodrigues is giving one of the great post-match interviews
Firstly I want to thank Jesus, because I couldn’t do this on my own. I know he carried me through today. I want to thank my mum, my dad, my coach and every single person who believed in me throughout this time. [Stops to wipe away tears] It was really hard, this last month, but this feels like a dream and it hasn’t sunk in yet.
I actually didn’t know I was batting at No3. I was down to bat at No5 but discussions were happening and I said, ‘Just let me know’. Around five minutes before I came in, I was told I was batting No3. But it wasn’t me, it was not to prove a point; it was just for me to win this match for India. We’ve always lost in crunch situations and I just wanted to be there to take us through.
It was not about my fifty or my hundred, it was about making India win. I know I know I got a few chances but I just feel that God rewards you if you do things with the right intention.
Last year I was dropped from this World Cup. This year I was in good form but things kept happening and I couldn’t count on anything. I’ve had such amazing people around me who believed me. I have almost cried every day throughout this competition. I was not doing well mentally, going through a lot of anxiety, then being dropped was another challenge for me. But I think all I had to do was show up, and God took care of everything.
Unbelievable. With the winning runs, the Indian players sprint onto the pitch. Harmanpreet punches the air and hugs the coach. Jemimah is overcome even as she walks off , she blows kisses to the crowd with one hand, wipes her eyes with the other. Australia are dumb-founded. Barely moving. Despite their record-breaking total, the big yellow machine malfunctioned.
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Player of the match - Jemimah
A weeping Jemimah collects her award, “ I want to thank every single person who believed in me. It feels like a dream”
India beat Australia by five wickets and will play South Africa in the final!
49.3 overs: India 341-5 ( Jemimah 127, Amanjot 15) Amanjot nearly does the job in two shots – but finishes it in three! Finds the power and the wherewithal to thrash four through the offside, two straight down the ground where it is cut of by a desperate diving fielder in yellow, and a final flourish through point. Out of this world cricket.
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48th over: India 331-5 (Jemimah 127, Amanjot 5) India need 8 from 12 balls
A couple off Sutherland’s first ball, then a wide, snatched magically by Healy to her left to stop it rolling to the rope. But she can’t do anything about the next ball which Jemimah ramps with style. Then another wide. Poor Sutherland marches back and wrinkles her nose. Beth Mooney has her head in her hands. And four more, Jemimah, stance wide, gloriously sliding the ball through point, she punches the air. The equation is India’s.
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46th over: India 316-5 ( Jemimah 118, Amanjot 1) India need 23 from 18 balls Jemimah tightens the knot with four from Molineux’s first ball, through point with power. Every hair on every body in Mumbai, chewing nails, sucking lips, stands alert. But Molineux keeps her nerve – just six from the over.
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WICKET! Richa c Garth b Sutherland 26 (India 310-5)
Tries to go up and over but finds only Garth at short third who holds on for dear life.
46th over: India 310-5 ( Jemimah 113, Amanjot 0 ) India need 29 from 24 balls Sutherland gives them nothing. Single, single, single, single, single, WICKET! We twist another bend.
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45th over: India 305-4 ( Jemimah 108, Richa13 ) India need 34 from 30 balls Richa on one knee, flamed amazement into the crowd for six, who are in ecstacies. Now another, just where she wants it from Gardner – this time four to deep midwicket. This is now advantage India.
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44th over: India 291-4 ( Jemimah 108, Richa 13 ) India need 48 from 36 balls Unbelievable, Richa shanks at a slower ball, it flies up and seemingly straight at McGrath at long-off, but she’s misjudged and the ball flies through her hands. Now four. Richa, backing away, top edging. The equation comes down further.
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43rd over: India 284-4 ( Jemimah 106, Richa 8 ) India need 55 from 42 balls Pressure – huh – Rodrigues reverse-weeps four from Gardner who plays dare with the umpire but is eventually called wide.
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A hundred for Jemimah
42nd over: India 276-4 ( Jemimah 100, Richa 7 ) India need 63 from 48 balls I still have no idea know where this is going. Jemimah reaches a glorious century but barely acknowledges it – clear your mind girl. Schutt’s last ball is crunched by Richa high into the night and over the rope.
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WICKET! Deepti run-out (Garth) 24 (India 264-4)
Oh. Oh dear. Jemimah tonks the ball straight to short fine leg and sets off at speed, but a ponderous Deepti has no chance. Out by a tail’s length.
41st over: India 264-4 ( Jemimah 95, Ghosh 0) India need 74 from 54 balls The roar for the top-edged sweep by Deepti that reaches the boundary is huge, but the silence after her dismissal hangs like a damp coat in the Mumbai night.
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40th over: India 257-3 ( Jemimah 95, Deepti 18) India need 82 from 60 balls Schutt replaces Sutherland. They twinkle a couple of singles – Deepti over runs so can’t come back for a second from an overthrow in a tableau of limbs and voices. A wide. Then a full toss that slips dew-soaked out of Schutt’s hand. But Deepti can only find a single off the free-hit. More awesome fielding from Australia.
39th over: India 249-3 ( Jemimah 92, Deepti 16) India need 90 from 66 balls Deepti again, eyes like stone , steps and thunders King straight for a lofted four. She thinks she’s got another, but more elite fielding in the circle thwarts her. King gets away with a full toss.
38th over: India 240-3 ( Jemimah 90, Deepti 9) India need 98 from 72 balls Deepti gets the boundary first ball, up and over, clean hit over midwicket for four. The target drops below 100.
37th over: India 234-3 ( Jemimah 89, Deepti 4) India need 105 from 78 balls King, balletic approach. Beats Rodrigues with pearlers first and last ball of her over.
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36th over: India 229-3 ( Jemimah 87, Deepti 2) India need 109 from 84 balls An astonishing innings by Harmanpreet of power and passion – but will it be enough? Deepti doesn’t have long before she must start motoring.
WICKET! Harmanpreet c Gardner b Sutherland 89 (India 226-3)
Top-notch diving catch by Gardner, holding on with one hand as she hit the ground. The stadium gasps. Harmanpreet is applauded into the dugout by her teammates, but marches straight into the tunnel.
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35th over: India 226-2 ( Jemimah 89, Kaur 85) Huge appeal for lbw by King against Rodrigues – Healy is especially desperate – and reviews. Rodrigues stretches into a sweep, misses, is hit on the back pad… but the ball would have bounced over the stumps. I think the stadium is pleased. Even more pleased now as Harmanpreet, boots like fire , pounds King up, up, and just short of the rope for four. Two Australian fielders converge but can do nothing.
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34th over: India 218-2 ( Jemimah 84, Kaur 83) Four through midwicket, hit with force of will as much as speed of arms, as Harmanpreet almost catches up Jemimah. Six from Sutherland’s over.
I think Rob referenced this match earlier…
Healy drops Jemimah
32nd over: India 212-2 ( Jemimah 83, Kaur 78) Harmanpreet pistachioes Alana King, striding down the pitch in her big boots, and dispatching her for six. And oh my – Jemimah hacks high into the air, King and Healy both go for the catch, and Healy lets it slip, somehow, like salt, through her gloves. But no time to post-mortem, the next ball is bottom edged by Harmanpreet for four. King, somehow, summons a smile.
32nd over: India 201-2 ( Jemimah 82, Kaur 68) The two hundred comes up as Sutherland’s first two balls are tapped for singles. But just three off the over, some tight fielding in the ring.
“Game on?” asks Jeremy Boyce. Game on Jeremy. “Finished cleaning my cooker and am back on your OBO. India are well in this. 2 wkts down, half an innings to play, run rate not too challenging if either of these two or the others can hit out now. Baz and Ben would say this is well on. Australia would fancy their chances if they were batting. But they’re not.... Intriguing. Go India !”
31st over: India 198-2 ( Jemimah 81, Kaur 66) Mumbai starting to sniff something now – Harmanpreet darts down the pitch to Gardner, swings legside, with flamingo bend, for six. They take drinks, with India needing 141 from 19 overs.
“India are returning the favour a la South Africa and completing a new record run chase by 2 runs,” writes Jazba. “Australia were good for 400 and crumbled.”
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30th over: India 189-2 ( Jemimah 80, Kaur 58) Take that, Harmanpreet snorts, rocking back on her heels and launching McGrath over extra cover for six. Four singles, India running like wolves now.
Raf’s England debrief:
Fifty for Harmanpreet
29th over: India 179-2 ( Jemimah 78, Kaur 50) At twenty to four, the skies are fading already in Manchester, they’re black in Mumbai. Kaur rolls her wrists to pick up a single for her fifty. Does she smile? Don’t be silly.
28th over: India 174-2 ( Jemimah 75, Kaur 48) 47) McGrath charges in, arms diagonal pistons. Australia are diving lemon daemons on the rope, diving full length without fear. Rodrigues thwarts them by lofting McGrath over extra-cover for four. Tick tock.
27th over: India 165-2 ( Jemimah 67, Kaur 47) Gardner hauls things back with four dots. Harmanpreet tries to break the shackles but can only pick up a single to long on.
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26th over: India 163-2 ( Jemimah 66, Kaur 46) Garth starts with a wide. Two balls later, King dives on the rope, predator-like , to prevent a Jemimah scoop running for four. She digs up the surface with her spikes as she does so. But no-one can stop a wide one running for four leg byes. The next is flicked by Harmanpreet, as a rolled up newspaper after a fly, over midwicket for four more. Fourteen from the over.
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25th over: India 149-2 ( Jemimah 61, Kaur 43) Four singles from Gardner’s second over. At the half way stage, India are behind the run-rate, but have only lost two wickets. Advantage Australia, but all is not lost. Win predictor says 71 per cent Australia – India need another 190.
24th over: India 145-2 ( Jemimah 61, Kaur 38) Garth replaces Molineux, and Jemimah cuts her with rolling wrists to the rope. The red soil of the pitch is almost florescent under the lights. And Healy is in a bit of trouble after she’s hit from off the last ball somewhere painful on the gloves – in fact there might have been a tiny edge on that.
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23rd over: India 138-2 ( Jemimah 55, Kaur 37) Harmanpreet is beginning to purr, flames King to the midwicket boundary. Some sloppy backing up – pressure tells, even for Australia. Beth Mooney breathes heavily in the heat of the evening.
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22nd over: India 132-2 ( Jemimah 54, Kaur 31) India graciously accept a wide from Molineux, which on top of a late cut boundary from Harmanpreet and an overthrow means eight from the over.
Fifty for Jemimah
21st over: India 124-2 ( Jemimah 54, Kaur 25) Jemimah reaches a vital fifty with an urgent sweep to the rope, which just beats Litchfield (?) at full stretch. Then a lofted cover drive, just brushing the the diving hand of Litchfield again – at full stretch in middle air. Oh the glory of youth . Then a collision as Harmanpreet at full pelt charges into King waiting for the ball at the non-striker’s end. Both tumble to the ground, but seem ok.
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20th over: India 116-2 ( Jemimah 48, Kaur 23) After three more dot balls, Jemimah glides Molineaux for a tasty four, then forces Harmanpreet into a tight single.
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19th over: India 111-2 ( Jemimah 43, Kaur 23) King offers Harmanpreet a juicy full toss, and she leans in and tonks it through mid-on for a needed boundary – but those are the only runs from the over. Jemimah watches and waits from the non-striker’s end, the shadows from the bars of her helmet dancing on her neck.
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18th over: India 107-2 ( Jemimah 43, Kaur 19) Molineaux replaces Sutherland. Starts with a wide that passes Harmanpreet’s bat and Healy’s gloves and zips down to the rope. Nice running brings three singles, but the run-rate has crept up to 7.21.
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17th over: India 99-2 ( Jemimah 42, Kaur 17) King with the ball, and it is starting to rain in Navi Mumbai, umbrellas upa nd cagouls on around the ground. India hitting the ball nicely but finding the fielders. King calls for a towel to dry the ball.
16th over: India 94-2 ( Jemimah 39, Kaur 16) Sutherland resumes, Jemimah scoops, but only for a single. But Harmapreet does make the rope, tonked through mid-on with style.
15th over: India 88-2 ( Jemimah 38, Kaur 10) Alana King, fresh from 7-18 against South Africa, gets her first bowl. Harmanpreet doesn’t look entirely at ease, gets the ball stuck somewhere in her pad from the last ball, and Healy scrambles for a stumping. They take drinks, with India still in it – just.
14th over: India 83-2 ( Jemimah 36, Kaur 7) Sutherland’s first ball is tattied away through backwards point for four by Jemimah. And then Harmapreet, who has been slow off the mark, gets her first boundary with four flashed past a diving extra cover. At the same point in their innings, Australia were 89-1.
“Well I looked up Chip Butty now,” writes Krishnamoorthy V. “The humble vada pav is loaded with history. This was introduced during the textile mill boom years of Bombay when the workers needed to eat something quickly without a need to wash their hands later. A Pav (a special kind of bread) the fried potato filled vada and dry garlic chutney combination was easy on the purse, tasty on the palette and clean on the hands.”
Fabulous history lesson – thank you! Also, I need to try one.
13th over: India 74-2 ( Jemimah 31, Kaur 3) Molineux again, low pony tail, delicate gold hoop earrings. Just a single from it.
12th over: India 73-2 ( Jemimah 30, Kaur 3) A double change as Sutherland is thrown the ball. Her first ball is a full toss and Jemimah makes merry – three more singles to ensure that India are not falling too far behind on the run rate.
11th over: India 66-2 ( Jemimah 24, Kaur 2) Healy turns to Molineux. Jemimah slips over in the middle but scrambles back in time. Molineaux drops short and Jemimah licks her lips, sways and and shimmies her away for four.
10th over: India 60-2 ( Jemimah 19, Kaur 1) Garth’s first ball is caressed once more through the covers for four by Smriti, but she gets her reward, from a dud of a ball but a hell of a review by Healy. The stadium balloon deflates a little more.
WICKET! Smriti c Healy b Garth 24 (India 59-2)
Silence at Navi Mumbai as Smriti – motoring – is given out on review. An eyelash of a spike on Ultra Edge – strangled down the leg side off a wide. Smriti can’t believe it, shakes her head as she shuffles off.
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9th over: India 55-1 ( Smriti 20, Jemimah 19) Gardner gets a go. Exquisite from Jemimah, a gem of a cover drive thrilling to the rope. And another, but Litchfield never gives up on the chase and saves four on the dive. She pants, hands on knees, giving everything.
8th over: India 49-1 ( Smriti 20, Jemimah 13) Garth gets the treatment now, Jemimah jumping almost into box splits and spooning Garth backwards for four.
”Andy Pechey complimented the new verbs you are inventing (mangoed, frying panned, baguetted) for the shots, in the OBO yesterday.” Desperate times Krishnamoorthy V…. “Let me help you with some more with local flavor ---- vada-pav_ed, jalebi_ed, dhokla_ed, bajji_ed, lassi_ed.”
I just looked up a vada-pav, the Indian equivalent of a chip barm/butty?
7th over: India 44-1 ( Smriti 20, Jemimah 8) Stand upon stand of blue shirts gyrate to the crack of a Smriti cut, sliding like a paper knife through the green sward. A fabulous dive from Ellyse Perry on the rope saves another four next ball.
6th over: India 38-1 ( Smriti 14, Jemimah 8) Glorious from Smriti – plonks her left foot and clonks Garth back over her head for a heady six. Jemimah whisks four through midwicket and the stadium rocks with delight. I think I heard a commentator say 40,00 are in the stands today, and nearly every one in Indian blue.
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5th over: India 27-1 ( Smriti 7, Jemimah 4) Smriti nearly loses her stumps, having a wild hack at a ball that winks away and beats Healy as well, zipping down to the rope for four byes.
4th over: India 20-1 ( Smriti 6, Jemimah 3) A smart pick up at backward point stops a pretty shot from Smriti – Australia unlikely to be as sloppy in the field as India were. Five dots, a wide and a single off Garth. With a run rate of nearly seven at the start of the innings, India can’t have too many unproductive overs.
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3rd over: India 18-1 ( Smriti 5, Jemimah 2) Schutt’s forehead glistens with sweat. Three from her over.
Hello Jeremy Boyce. “We are privileged to be alive to enjoy this Australia team. They’ve piled up another intimidating target today and I can’t see the bowlers letting the batters down now. All the same, India, eh ? If they can pull this one off they will dine out on it for years to come. And IF they manage it, where does that leave England ? There’ve been plenty of runs there for the taking but England failed to maximise. What do you think is holding them back ? Weight of expectation ? They’ve got good players and great structure behind them but have been left behind. And I haven’t even started on The Womens Ashes...
I think England’s main issue is that there seems to have been a lack of succession planning, or rather the young uns haven’t come on as the management hoped. I reckon this will change as the new(ish) domestic structure beds in and and because Edwards has demanded that all players play more domestic cricket.
2nd over: India 15-1 ( Smriti 4, Jemimah 0) Cracking comeback by Garth who had just been smoked through the covers by Shafali for four. Not the start India were after, though not as catastrophic as England’s yesterday.
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WICKET! Shafali lbw Garth 10 (India 13-1)
Shafali is quite far forward with her royal blue pad but it looks pretty plum…she reviews… and, yes, the ball would have cannoned into leg stump. An early wicket and a wasted review.
India need 339 to win
1st over: India 8-0 ( Smriti 2, Shafali 6) The last time Shafali Verma played an ODI for India was 2024. But here she picks up the first boundary of the chase, whisking Megan Schutt legside and down to the rope. If you’re in Navi Mumbai do let us know what the atmosphere is like in the stadium. If you’re anywhere else, come chew the fat with us.
Here come the players
The highest successful run chase in any women’s ODI? Over to you India.
Yesterday, South Africa’s 319 was the highest total in a World Cup semi-final. Today it is 338, Ash Gardner overtaking South Africa with two consecutive sixes.
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Thank you Rob, I’ll slip you that fiver later. I can’t lie, as the kids (possibly) say this looks a mountain too high, a river too deep, for India. But Harmanpreet. But Smriti. But Jemimah. But the dropped-in Shafali Verma.
“Is there dew,” asks Dinesh Karthik standing on the pitch. He’s asked the groundsman who reports that there will be a slight increase but normally during monsoon season there shouldn’t be too much. The pitch remains as was and there should be some swing for the pace bowlers later on.
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Australia’s mighty total was built on a sparkling 119 from Phoebe Litchfield and fine support from Ellyse Perry (77) and Ash Gardner (63 from 45). It should be enough, but strange things can happen under lights.
If India are to win, they need somebody to play the innings of their life in a World Cup semi-final against Australia. It wouldn’t be the first time.
Thanks for your company. I’ll hand you over to the brilliant Tanya Aldred for the run-chase; bye!
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Phoebe Litchfield’s reaction
Yeah it was awesome to get the personal milestone but as a team it’s awesome to get over 300 and put a competitive score on the board.
I tried to assess the wicket, get myself in then take down the spinners when they put the ball in my area. Credit also goes to Pez [Ellyse Perry] for keeping me going. It was a team effort to get to 330-odd.
[On scoring so many runs through the off side] I try and pick the gaps. It’s a bit of a technical flaw, I slice balls all the time!
We would’ve taken [338] at the start of the day. Maybe we left a few out there at the back end but we’re really pleased.
India need 339 to win
That’s an admirable comeback from India, who restricted Australia to 123 for 8 from the last 17 overs. But they need a women’s ODI-record target of 339 to reach the final.
It would be a cracking story, mind, given the current record (331/7) was set by Australia against India in the group stage.
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WICKET! Australia 338 all out (Garth run out 17)
No hat-trick for Deepti Sharma but the innings ends with one ball to spare when Garth is run out from long off.
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WICKET! Australia 336-9 (Molineux b Deepti 0)
Deepti Sharma is on a hat-trick! Very clever bowling, fired in at leg stump to bowl Molineux round her legs.
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WICKET! Australia 336-8 (King c Ghosh b Deepti 4)
King is caught behind on review; she was walking before the third umpire confirmed the decision. Four balls to go.
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49th over: Australia 335-7 (Garth 15, King 4) Alana King can bat too, as she showed against Pakistan earlier in the tournament. She gets off the mark by skipping down to crack Radha Yadav through extra cover for four. One over to go; Australia already have the highest score in a Women’s World Cup semi-final.
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WICKET! Australia 331-7 (Gardner run out 63)
Mercy. Gardner skips down to drag Yadav for a huge six over midwicket. She is almost redefining the role of the No6 in ODI cricket. She’s certainly rewriting the record books: no player batting No6 or lower has ever scored as many runs at a Women’s World Cup.
Gardner hits a flat six to the same part of the ground next ball. But then she’s run out after a mid-pitch mix-up. Garth eventually tried to sacrifice herself but it was too late, so Gardner goes for a punishing 63. She wasn’t at her fluent best, yet Gardner still hit four sixes and scored at a strike rate of 140.
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48th over: Australia 319-6 (Gardner 51, Garth 14) Deepti fires the ball outside leg stump to Gardner, who reacts brilliantly to whirl the ball round the corner for four. That brings up a crucial fifty partnership in 36 balls – and then Gardner brings up her own fifty with a thump down the ground for two. She has developed into a sensational cricketer. The fifty came from 41 balls, but she’s on the charge and has scored 33 from the last 17.
47th over: Australia 311-6 (Gardner 44, Garth 14) A horrible short ball from Yadav is haddocked over midwicket for six by Gardner, who is every opposing captain’s worst nightmare at this stage of an innings. If she’s still batting at the end, Australia will almost certainly have too many runs.
46th over: Australia 300-6 (Gardner 35, Garth 12) Garth is playing a textbook supporting role, getting off strike so that Gardner can face as many deliveries as possible. Gardner clips Amanjot for four, which takes her average for this World Cup to exactly 100; that’s with a strike rate of 124 as well.
45th over: Australia 292-6 (Gardner 30, Garth 10) So much for seeing Charani off. Gardner skips down the track to blooter a mighty six over midwicket. Another big shot over square leg lands just short of the fielder, with Rodrigues running round behind her to save the boundary.
Charani’s last over is taken for 13. Despite that, she ends with excellent figures of 10-0-49-2.
44th over: Australia 279-6 (Gardner 18, Garth 9) Deepti, who has bowled much better in the second half of the innings, keeps Australia to four singles. One concern for India is that the ball is definitely starting to turn.
43rd over: Australia 275-6 (Gardner 16, Garth 7) Charani returns for her penultimate over. Gardner heaves a slog-sweep for a single but that aside Australia deal in low-risk shots. It makes sense to see Charani off and target, well, everybody else.
India have fought back well, restricting Australia to 60 for 4 from the last 10 overs.
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42nd over: Australia 271-6 (Gardner 13, Garth 6) Kim Garth gets off the mark with a five, four of them overthrows from Harmnanpreet I think. If India lose by anything up to 20 runs they will reflect on some unusually shoddy fielding.
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WICKET! Australia 265-6 (McGrath run out 12)
Gardner moves into double figures with a majestic shot, slammed through the covers off the back foot. She plays a similar stroke later in the over – but this time it’s straight to Jemimah Rodrigues and McGrath is run out by a mile! There was never a run there, not to Jemimah. Her pick-up and throw to Ghosh were immaculate and McGrath was well short.
41st over: Australia 260-5 (Gardner 9, McGrath 11) Ghosh misses a difficult stumping chance down the leg side when Deepti sees Gardner coming and bowls a deliberate wide.
A few balls are starting to grip for the spinners, which will interest one Australian genius in particular. An otherwise good over from Deepti is tarnished by another delivery outside leg stump – unintentional this time – that Gardner clips for four.
40th over: Australia 253-5 (Gardner 4, McGrath 10) The batters keep coming: Tahlia McGrath is Australia’s No7.
Tahlia McGrath is not a No7, though, and she starts with two punchy drives through extra cover. The first brings two runs, the second a boundary after a misfield. India have been sloppy in the field. A deliberate slash behind square takes McGrath to 10 from 4 balls. No7 indeed.
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WICKET! Australia 243-5 (Perry b Yadav 77)
The TV pictures return just in time to see Radha Yadav bowl Ellyse Perry! It was a fine delivery that skidded on to beat Perry’s attempted cut and ping the off stump. Perry goes for a deceptively laboured innings of 77 from 88 balls. At times I thought she was batting too slowly, but with each passing wicket her runs become more important.
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39th over: Australia 243-4 (Perry 77, Gardner 4) Kranti Gaud returns for a second spell. It doesn’t start well, with a bad ball that Perry slashes for four. And now the TV picture is down! Tremendous.
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38th over: Australia 234-4 (Perry 69, Gardner 3) The left-arm spinner Charani, who has quietly been the pick of the Indian attack, gets some extra bounce to beat Gardner. This is an important spell – Charani has two overs remaining after this and could change the game by dismissing Gardner.
She beats Gardner again to end a terrific over. Charani’s figures (8-0-32-2) do not flatter here.
37th over: Australia 233-4 (Perry 68, Gardner 3) Gardner gets off the mark with a fierce extra-cover drive for two off Thakur, who is back in the attack. A decent over from it, with no boundaries and five runs in total.
36th over: Australia 228-4 (Perry 66, Gardner 0) The new batter is Ash Gardner, probably the best most dangerous middle-order hitter in the world right now. But if India get her early, they will be right back in this game.
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WICKET! Australia 228-4 (Sutherland ct and b Charani 3)
India keep chipping away! Sutherland, who almost offered a return catch to Charani earlier in the cover, does it for real when she pushes with hard hands and is safely caught at head height.
35th over: Australia 225-3 (Perry 65, Sutherland 2) Five from the first over after the break. Australia will be eyeing 370 or so from here; India need to keep them to, what, 330?
34th over: Australia 220-3 (Perry 61) That was the last ball of the over, and a good time for a drinks break.
WICKET! Australia 220-3 (Mooney c Jemimah b Charani 24)
India might just be inching their way back into the game. Beth Mooney has fallen, caught at cover by Jemimah Rodrigues to end a busy cameo of 24 from 21 balls.
In other news, England’s men’s team are in danger of missing out on automatic qualification for the next World Cup.
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33rd over: Australia 215-2 (Perry 58, Mooney 22) Perry jhas hit two gorgeous sixes but looks frustrated with her inability to time a number of other attacking strokes. No such problems for Mooney, who charges Deepti to hoick a boundary to cow corner. Perfectly placed.
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32nd over: Australia 207-2 (Perry 56, Mooney 16) And… action! Perry drives Amanjot devastatingly over long-on for six, the first ball she has faced since reaching fifty. Mooney pulled four earlier in the over.
31st over: Australia 196-2 (Perry 50, Mooney 11) Perry drives Yadav for a single to reach her first fifty of the tournament: 66 balls, five fours and a six. Reaching the milestone may free her up because India are having a decent spell, with just three runs from that over.
India will hope for a reverse of the group game between the sides. On that occasion India were 192 for 1 after 30 overs and looked set for 370 or more. But they lost their way, were bowled out for 330 and eventually lost by three wickets.
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30th over: Australia 193-2 (Perry 49, Mooney 9) Perry has scored only 15 runs from her last 31 deliveries. Litchfield’s brilliance means it’s not a problem in the grand scheme, but it’s something to keep an eye on.
29th over: Australia 188-2 (Perry 46, Mooney 7) Mooney gets her first boundary with a sweep off Radha Yadav. India waste a review on an LBW appeal, with the ball pitching a fair way outside leg stump. The keeper Richa Ghosh wasn’t interested but they went upstairs anyway; it was a symptom of scrambled minds.
28th over: Australia 181-2 (Perry 45, Mooney 1) Amanjot has quietly bowled a useful spell: 4-0-17-1.
WICKET! Australia 180-2 (Litchfield b Amanjot 119)
The end of a classic innings. Litchfield premeditates a scoop, misses and is bowled by Amanjot. India needed that wicket like you wouldn’t believe. Litchfield walks off after an innings she’ll cherish forever (if Australia win): 119 from 93 balls with 17 fours and three sixes.
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27th over: Australia 178-1 (Litchfield 117, Perry 45) Litchfield blasts Deepti back over her head for six, because why wouldn’t you? And why wouldn’t you hack an almighty switch hit over extra cover for six more next ball?
The second six brings up the 150 partnership and prompts an almost awestruck smile from Ellyse Perry. That’s Ellyse Perry, by the way, one of the all-time greats.
Top-level sport is extremely tough. Most players tend to enjoy their achievements after the event rather than during, when everything is too intense and important. But Litchfield is different, certainly at this stage of her career. When she bats, one word comes to mind again and again.
26th over: Australia 162-1 (Litchfield 103, Perry 43) Litchfield is dropped by the keeper Ghosh! It was a tough chance standing up to the stumps, although Dinesh Karthik on commentary thinks she should have taken it. Litchfield went hard at the ball but the actual deflection wasn’t too big.
25th over: Australia 159-1 (Litchfield 102, Perry 41) Litchfield’s brilliance has allowed Perry to cruise along to 41 from 51 balls. There’s a decent argument she should throw the bat, especially given Australia’s depth, but right now it feels like Australia can do as they please.
A wonderful hundred from Phoebe Litchfield!
24th over: Australia 157-1 (Litchfield 101, Perry 40) Sree Charani returns to the attack. Litchfield charges her first ball and drives it sweetly over mid-off to reach a glorious 77-ball hundred. It’s the fastest in a World Cup knockout game, and she’s the youngest – by four years – to achieve that feat.
It’s been a classic Litchfield innings, bursting with skill, intent, imagination and an infectious effervescence. Oh, and boundaries, lots of boundaries: 17 fours and one six. She may have settled this semi-final already.
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23rd over: Australia 152-1 (Litchfield 96, Perry 40) That single over from Deepti Sharma was to allow Amanjot and now Radha Yadav to change ends. Radha goes around the wicket to the left-handed Litchfield, making a bit harder for her to free her arms. Three singles from the over.
22nd over: Australia 149-1 (Litchfield 94, Perry 39) Litchfield moves into the nineties with an edge for four off Amanjot. Nobody under the age of 26* has scored a century in a Women’s World Cup knockout game. Litchfield is 22.
* That was Laura Wolvaardt yesterday.
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21st over: Australia 144-1 (Litchfield 89, Perry 39) Deepti, back on for Amanjot, is reverse swept over short third by Litchfield. That’s her 15th four.
Deepti stops in her delivery stride, I think as a warning to Perry for backing up too far. A repeat of Lord’s 2022: now that would enliven this semi-final.
Drinks
“If you have a moment, could you please explain the fielding stats I’ve been reading over the past week, stating that the team at the top of the fielding stats table in this ODI contest is England?” asks Sarah Bacon. “I am aware that England has improved in a lot of areas since the last Ashes but I’m a tad gobsmacked that they’re number one performers in this area. Happy/not happy to be proven incorrect.”
I’m not certain (about anything), but I think those stats are just percentage of catches taken at this World Cup. They don’t take into account the difficulty of the catches, or misfields etc. From memory England did catch well in this World Cup.
20th over: Australia 135-1 (Litchfield 83, Perry 37) One left-arm spinner, Radha Yadav, replaces another in Charani. Litchfield greets her with successive boundaries over and through extra cover. The first wasn’t perfectly timed but had enough to clear the infield; the second was nailed.
And so was the third, driven over mid-off to end the over. In fact, that’s drinks. This is a wonderful innings from Litchfield, 83 not out from 66 balls. She’s 22 years old.
19th over: Australia 121-1 (Litchfield 69, Perry 37) The medium pacer Amanjot Kaur replaces Deepti Sharma, who wasn’t at her best in a spell of 3-0-18-0. Litchfield premeditates a lap stroke that brings her 11th four; we’re only in the 19th over.
18th over: Australia 115-1 (Litchfield 64, Perry 36) There’s no turn for Charani but she’s bowling very accurately. Her fourth over goes for only two, and one of those came from a partial misfield off her own bowling.
17th over: Australia 113-1 (Litchfield 63, Perry 35) Deepti tries to get herself and her team going by hurling the ball to the keeper, just past Perry’s head. Trouble is, the next ball is on the pads and put away with ease for four. Perry is cruising along and has 35 from 34 balls; Litchfield is on 63 from 53.
16th over: Australia 107-1 (Litchfield 62, Perry 30) That was the last ball of the over. The six Litchfield hit before that was stunning, lasered over extra cover.
Litchfield is not out!
Yep, it was a bump ball – she dragged the reverse sweep into the ground, after which it bounced up and was well caught by Amanjot. The interesting thing is that Litchfield was halfway off the field when Ellyse Perry ran after her to say it was being checked by the third umpire. The technology was pretty clear that it was a bump ball.
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WICKET? This could be a vital breakthrough for India. The ball after driving a sensational six over extra cover, Litchfield scuffs a reverse sweep straight to Amanjot at short third. She’s been given out – but it may have been a bump ball.
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15th over: Australia 99-1 (Litchfield 55, Perry 29) Perry joins in with a gorgeous straight six off Deepti, straight out of the textbook. India are in abundant bother here; since the resumption Australia have scored 74 in 9.5 overs.
Litchfield races to fifty
14th over: Australia 89-1 (Litchfield 53, Perry 21) Litchfield, on the charge, thumps Charani back over her head for four to reach a fabulous, tone-setting fifty: 46 balls, 10 fours. She’s going to be a superstar; even at the age of 22, she’s not far off.
Litchfield’s ODI record against India is exceptional: 561 runs at 70 with a strike rate of 93.
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13th over: Australia 82-1 (Litchfield 48, Perry 19) Deepti Sharma comes on to bowl her brisk offspin. Litchfield mistimes a reverse sweep, with the ball hitting the forearm and looping over Ghosh. At first it looked like a chance but it was definitely off the forearm rather than the glove. Instead there was almost a run-out opportunity; the non-striker Perry wanted a quick single and had to scamper back to make her ground.
“India need a Travis Head-esque catch/moment to pull it back,” says Anul Kanhere. “Something to paper over the scars of Australian misery heaped on Indian teams.”
12th over: Australia 80-1 (Litchfield 47, Perry 18) The left-arm spinner Sree Charani delivers an over without a boundary. It’s a really good start, largely on the money and with just a single to Litchfield.
11th over: Australia 79-1 (Litchfield 46, Perry 18) Litchfield hammers Thakur over wide mid-off for four to bring up the fifty partnership in 32 balls. This is extremely ominous for India. Never mind a wicket, they just need an over without a boundary.
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10th over: Australia 72-1 (Litchfield 39, Perry 18) Kranti Gaud is haemorrhaging runs. Perry hits back-to-back boundaries, both from poor deliveries: a length ball on the pads and a full toss on off stump. A skilful late cut makes it three boundaries in four balls.
Gaud, playing the biggest game of her life to date, is having a tough time: her figures are 5-0-49-1.
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9th over: Australia 60-1 (Litchfield 39, Perry 6) Thakur seams a good delivery past Litchfield’s outside edge, the second of four consecutive dot balls. The run is broken when Litchfield flashes an edge past slip for four.
Thakur’s figures of 5-0-22-0 are a minor scandal; she’s bowled beautifully.
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8th over: Australia 56-1 (Litchfield 35, Perry 6) Outstanding batting from Litchfield, who twists her wrists to squeeze a wide yorker from Gaud past backward point for four. That is such a skilful stroke.
A fierce square drive gets through Amanjot, who should have done better, and runs away for Litchfield’s seventh four. India have been extremely sloppy in the field since the resumption; as if to the prove the point, the next ball flies down the leg side for five wides. Richa Ghosh probably should have stopped that as well.
Gaud switches around the wicket in an attempt to cut out the wides to Litchfield. And though she concedes only a single from the last four balls, the over still costs 15. Despite the loss of Healy, Australia are off to a flyer.
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7th over: Australia 41-1 (Litchfield 26, Perry 6) Perry’s nervous start continues with an inside edge past leg stump for four. When I say ‘past leg stump’, we’re talking millimetres. Thakur follows that with a wider slower ball that beats Perry’s edge; she’s been the pick of the bowlers so far, even though it was Gaud who took the wicket.
When Perry rotates strike, Ghosh comes up to the stumps to ensure Litchfield can’t keep charging down the pitch. Tactics, tactics.
Perry is not out! I think wrong: the ball from Thakur would have missed leg stump by a fair way. The key point is that it was delivered from wide on the crease so the angle and inswing were always taking it past the stumps.
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Australia review: Perry given out LBW! I think she’s in trouble here, umpire’s call at best.
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Play resumes after rain
6th over: Australia 34-1 (Litchfield 25, Perry 1) The players are back but India’s heads are still in the shed. Deepti Sharma’s, anyway: her needless throw from cover, with nobody backing up, gives Litchfield four bonus runs. Litchfield salts the wound by driving the next ball through extra cover for four.
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The covers are coming off
A passing shower. But enough about England, ho ho ho, because play should resume in the next few minutes.
There’s a unique fascination in a battle between players at different stages of their careers, especially when it’s an established great and a potential great. Since the start of September Alyssa Healy, 35, has been dismissed by Kranti Gaud, 22, in four of her five innings against India. But the other match was the group game at this World Cup, in which Healy made an epic 142 and took Gaud to the cleaners.
Rain stops play
It started raining before Kranti Gaud began the sixth over, but the umpires tried to continue. Healy was out first ball, the rain started to get heavier and the players followed her off the field.
I don’t think there was anything wrong with the protocol, or the umpires’ attempt to play on, but Healy wouldn’t be human if she wasn’t hacked off.
WICKET! Australia 25-1 (Healy b Gaud 5)
Harmanpreet Kaur is the most relieved person in India. Alyssa Healy has dragged a length ball from Kranti Gaud back onto the stumps and is on her way for five. And she will be fuming because that’s the last ball before rain stops play.
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5th over: Australia 25-0 (Healy 5, Litchfield 17) Thakur has been the better of the new-ball bowlers so far. An accurate over yields three runs, including – you do the math – no boundaries. That’s important given the start Litchfield has maded.
“Rob,” writes Krishnamoorthy V. “Did the stump mic pick up Healy saying ‘You just dropped the World Cup, mate’?”
Arf, very good. (Even if the original was apocryphal.)
4th over: Australia 22-0 (Healy 3, Litchfield 16) Litchfield continues to deal in boundaries, moving to 16 with a whip to fine leg. She tries for a fifth boundary, charging down the track to Gaud, but misses a wild slap across the line.
This is fascinating stuff. Litchfield has put India on the back foot straight away with her aggression.
Healy dropped on 2 by Harmanpreet!
3rd over: Australia 17-0 (Healy 3, Litchfield 12) Healy has been dropped by her opposite number! Goodness me, what a moment so early in the contest. She tried to drive Thakur over the top, didn’t connect properly and watched the ball loop towards mid-off. Harmanpreet ran round, reached out with both hands but couldn’t hang on to a relatively straightforward chance. She had a second go as the ball rebounded off her wrist, then a third before it dropped to the ground.
Litchfield continues her flying start with a drive behind square for four. Twenty-two-year-olds are not supposed to come out of the blocks like this in a World Cup semi-final.
2nd over: Australia 12-0 (Healy 2, Litchfield 8) Litchfield punches Kranti Gaud sweetly to the cover boundary to get off the mark. Not much swing for Gaud just yet, and Litchfield ends the over by whacking another boundary over mid-off. That was a classy - and, for India, ominously confident - stroke.
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There was a charming scene before the game when Harmanpreet Kaur invited one of the Indian mascots to address the team in the huddle, a duty the young girl performed with a smile and some demonstrative gestures. I can’t do it justice; I’ll try to the find a video.
1st over: Australia 3-0 (Healy 1, Litchfield 0) Thakur finds some immediate inswing – too much at first, with a couple of leg-side wides giving Australia their first runs. Healy pushes a single into the covers; Litchfield hits the field with a couple of off-side strokes and leaves the last ball of the over. Those two wides aside, a good start from Thakur.
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Folks, it’s time for cricket. The new ball tends to swing in Navi Mumbai and I can’t wait to see the latest chapter in the battle between Kranti Gaud and Alyssa Healy. But it’s Renuka Singh Thakur who will bowl the first over.
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“Morning from a cold Warsaw,” writes Krishnamoorthy V. “I came to know today (TIL in the modern lingo) that Ian Healy is an uncle of Alyssa. The batting depth in the Indian line up is amazing but we have to wait and see if the bowlers can give them an easy target to chase.”
Whatever the target, and whether India chase it or not, I can’t see it being easy.
The teams line up for the anthems. The players are wearing black armbands in memory of Ben Austin, the young cricketer who died tragically after being hit on the neck while batting in the nets.
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The pitch is good for batting, according to the TV pundits, though Dinesh Karthik reckons it will turn in the second innings. If only Australia had a decent spinner.
The destructive Shafali Verma, who only joined India’s World Cup squad a couple of days ago as a replacement for the injured Pratika Rawal, goes straight into the XI. That’s one of three changes for the washout against Bangladesh. Richa Ghosh and Kranti Gaud return as expected; Harleen Deol and Uma Chetry drop out.
Australia make two changes from the XI that hammered South Africa. Alyssa Healy and Sophie Molineux replace the Georgias, Voll and Wareham.
Team news
India Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Amanjot Kaur, Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), Radha Yadav, Krani Gaud, Shee Charani, Renuka Singh Thakur.
Australia Alyssa Healy (c/wk), Phoebe Litchfield, Ellyse Perry, Beth Mooney, Annabel Sutherland, Ashleigh Gardner, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Kim Garth, Alana King, Megan Schutt.
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Australia win the toss and bat
Runs on the board in a semi-final and all that. Australia may also be mindful of the 2017 semi-final, when Harmanpreet Kaur stunned them with an amazing 171.
“Looks like great conditions, I don’t know the wicket’s gonna change much so it’s a great opportunity for us to put a score on the board,” says Alyssa Healy. I’m healthy, I’m just getting a little bit old!”
Harmanpreet says India would have batted but that they hope to take advantage of the overcast conditions with the new ball.
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Healy fit to return for Australia
Australian captain Alyssa Healy, who missed the last two group games through injury, is walking out for the toss with Harmanpreet Kaur.
Weather watch
There were showers in Navi Mumbai this morning, it says here, with a small chance of more rain later in the day. There’s a reserve day if necessary, so I think we can safely cool our jets where the weather is concerned.
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Five of Australia’s all-conquering team set for a showdown against hosts India in the women’s cricket World Cup semi-final on Thursday have surged through the threshold of $1m annual earnings, as the growing financial opportunities in the global game approach and even exceed the value of Cricket Australia contracts.
That group might soon expand too, given an Indian Women’s Premier League “mega auction” is scheduled for November. The Australians – who have won three of the past four world T20 titles and are defending 50-over champions – are set to attract significant interest from the five franchises, each of which have approximately $2.6m to spend for the month-long tournament.
Australian Cricketers’ Association chief executive Paul Marsh said he expected women’s salaries to continue to grow. “It’s healthy, it can offer more and more players those sorts of opportunities, because that means we’ve got a better chance of securing the best athletes in the country.”
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Preamble
Opal Fruits aren’t the only thing that make your mouth water. Since time immemorial, World Cups – all sports, not just cricket – have been enriched by one particular fixture: a knockout game between the hosts and the holders.
India v Australia in Navi Mumbai is about as mouthwatering as semi-finals get. India, the hosts, are desperate to win their first World Cup. Australia, the holders, are favourites to win their eighth. Before the tournament, most people thought this would be the final; instead the two teams are fighting for the right to face South Africa on Sunday.
The group game between the sides was a minor classic that produced 661 runs. Tonight’s game could be an epic.
The match starts at 9.30am GMT, 7.30pm AEST, 3pm in Navi Mumbai.
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